A new documentary is taking you back to a time before Ridley Scott’s Alien changed movies forever by showing you just how the landmark 1979 film was made.
The film, Memory: The Origins of Alien, comes from writer/director Alexandre O. Philippe — the same man behind Psycho documentary 78/52: Hitchcock’s Shower Scene. The new movie looks at the origins of Alien, recounting how director Scott, writer Dan O’Bannon, and creature designer H.R. Giger came up with what would become one of the most iconic sci-fi/horror films ever made.
“Initially, the impulse was to actually make a feature about the chestburster, very specifically, but then I very quickly realize that you can’t approach the chestburster scene the same way as [Psycho‘s] shower scene,” Philippe told Collider. “They’re very different because Psycho and Alien resonate with audiences for completely different reasons. I’d argue that the reason Alien resonates with audiences around the world is because it taps into ideas and images that essentially connect with our ancient past. So Memory is, of course, an origin story but it’s also very much a mythological take on Ridley Scott’s Alien.”
Here’s the doc’s official synopsis:
Memory: The Origins of Alien unearths the largely untold origin story behind Ridley Scott’s cinematic masterpiece, and reveals a treasure trove of never-before-seen materials from the archives of Alien creators Dan O’Bannon and H.R. Giger – including original story notes, rejected designs and storyboards, exclusive behind-the-scenes footage, and O’Bannon’s original 29 page script from 1971, titled Memory. The documentary also takes fans on an exploration of the mythical underpinnings of Alien and dedicates focus on the film’s iconic “Chestburster” scene.
Memory: The Origins of Alien arrives both in theaters and On Demand Oct. 4.
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